Joseph Norman Crew

Fall In, Fall Out Joseph Norman Crew

Son, The Army Will Make A Man Out Of You At seventeen years old, and with parental permission, Joseph Crew and his identical twin brother, Richard, enlisted in the army in 1958. Their destination was the Third Armored Division in Germany-the same outfit Elvis Presley had been recently assigned to. Their parents were in the beginning stages of divorce, and Joseph and his brother were looking to escape the domestic warfare. Fall In, Fall Out is Joseph's memoir, set against the backdrop of a pre Civial Rights, racially integrated army, charged to protect Western Europe from Russia's hostile, overwhelming might during the deepening freeze of the Cold War. The book is about friendships, sexual discovery, racial tensions, and the heartbreak of young love. It starkly depicts barracks life and bleak war game maneuvers, and brings to life the flesh trade in a Mexican border town; the nightclubs of Copenhagen; the seedy streets of Amsterdam's red-light district; and the glittering neon lights of Paris and Frankfurt-offering a glimpse of what those cities were like thirteen years after the defeat of Nazi Germany. Based on hastily scribbled yet carefully preserved writings from the last six months of Joseph's military service, Fall In, Fall Out skillfully brings history to life. But it's also a coming-of-age story about two brothers struggling to become men-a touching tale resurrected from the ashes of memory.